Vrindavan (Uttar Pradesh), Sep 22 (IANS) Environmental activists Saturday submitted a memorandum to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav demanding heritage status for the temple town of Vrindavan.
The chief minister was in Vrindavan town of Mathura district to inaugurate a kitchen set up by non-government organisation (NGO) Akshaya Patra Foundation for providing meals in schools under the mid-day meal scheme.
"We told the chief minister that more than Rs.300 crore spent on various developmental projects in Vrindavan by the previous state government failed to produce noticeable results and required urgent remedial measures, as the number of pilgrims has increased many-fold in recent years," Jagan Nath Poddar, convener of Friends of Vrindavan, told IANS.
Friends of Vrindavan, in conjunction with Braj Vrindavan Heritage Alliance, asked the chief minister to step up conservation of forests, holy ponds and 'ghats' on Yamuna river which flows through the town.
Major demands listed in the memorandum include according a pilgrimage and heritage status for Vrindavan town; development of a green belt on the flood plains of Yamuna; recognition to the 'Kumbh Mela' held in the temple town every 12 years as a state fair; and an assurance from the government that the town would not be merged with the Mathura Municipal Corporation.
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